


You make me strong | Harry Styles + Selena Gomez = Harlena

by kseniaflannery



Category: Harry Styles - Fandom, Selena Gomez (Musician)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Multi, Selena Gomez References, Teenage One Direction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:48:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27802555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kseniaflannery/pseuds/kseniaflannery
Summary: Title: You make me stronger.Fandom: Harlena.Age restrictions: 18+Genres: Drama, romance.Description:  I was always the quietest student in my class, but that didn't free me from the girls' attention.  Once we were told to do a chemistry project in pairs, and I came across a partner whom everyone forgot about.  It turned out that she was even quieter and more imperceptible than me. Chemistry tied us together. Every day I got to know her more and more, every day new horrors from her life were revealed to me.  We are two opposites: I try to achieve my dreams, and she tries to survive. We decide to help each other, but it's not that simple.  We constantly quarrel, but now we cannot live a day without each other. We hate and love each other, and the reason is that we make each other strong.Status: OngoingWriting process: 5 November 2020 -
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan/Zayn Malik/Liam Payne/Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Selena Gomez/Harry Styles, Selena Gomez/Niall Horan
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

"POV HARRY"  
Today is the first day of school in the last year. In all these eleven years, I have not made friends with anyone. I mean, I'm on good terms with everyone, but I don't have a best friend or not even just a friend. All my classmates are just classmates, acquaintances, nothing more. Sometimes I am overwhelmed with sadness, even depression, because I have no one to spend the weekend or free time with. But, to be honest, I'm already used to such a life, and if I had a friend now, it would be very uncomfortable and difficult for me to get out of the world in which I exist. After all, when someone appears in your life, then everything turns upside down, everything that was familiar becomes somehow distant.  
In general, let's not talking about that now. Finally, the last year at school. Hurry to finish it and already move forward in life, fulfilling dreams.  
The first lesson today was chemistry. We didn’t go through anything interesting and new, we could say we were sitting idle, but we were given homework, oh-oh-oh, how much. Not only did we have to set five tasks to solve, the teacher also said us to do the project. Okay, this is nothing, I can handle it, I always do all the work in advance.

"Guys, this time I want you to work in pairs. Now I will put the list on the door, do not forget to see, please, your project partner."

Oh no, I'd rather work alone than with someone. They always need to be adjusted, to do everything yourself is much easier and faster!

“Mrs. Anderson, sorry,” I jumped out of my chair as soon as the recess bell rang.  
“No, Harry, you can't. This project is aimed at teamwork so that you all develop social skills", the teacher seemed to read my mind.

Probably, annoyance is clearly visible on my face. I didn't even want to see who would be my partner. Saddened, I left the classroom and wandered down the corridor. The only joy is that the other lessons were canceled, so you can go home.

Immersed in my own thoughts, I decided to lengthen the way home. I went around to get some fresh air before going back to my textbooks. I don't like this area, it's always so gloomy here. There are only shops with alcoholic drinks and cigarettes around, so drunks and drug addicts are always staggering here. I should get out of here.  
Suddenly from behind someone's hand touches my shoulder. I flinch in surprise, but when I turn around, I immediately calm down. It's just Selena. My classmate.

"Hey Harry, hello!" she said cheerfully. "I thought you were a good boy, what are you doing in a neighborhood like this?"  
"You'd better tell me what you're doing here. Do you really drink?" I have already said that I am on good terms with everyone, and Selena is no exception. I immediately decided to turn this conversation into a joke.  
"What are you talking about?! Me? Drinking? I would never do that!" The girl was indignant. "Do you know that we are preparing a project in chemistry together?"  
"I, uh, uh-"  
"I suggest to start as soon as possible, I do not want to put everything for the last day".  
She took me by surprise. Usually I'm the one who encourages others to do their homework.  
"Can you come to me today at five in the evening?" she asked.  
"Yes of course."  
"Fine, see you soon!" She smiled at me a little, I smiled back at her.

She's so cute. Are all those rumors about her true? It doesn't look like it was real.  
I turned around and looked after her, but saw her already entering one of these shops with alcohol. I don't know what motivated me at that moment, but I decided to come closer to this store, in the door of which Selena disappeared. It wasn’t necessary to wait for a long time, after about three minutes she was already coming back. I managed to hide behind the stairs so that I was not visible. I heard the sound of bottles beating against each other. Putting my head out, I saw Selena with five bottles of vodka. Is she really that? I refuse to believe it, but the evidence is right in front of my eyes. Selena has already put all the bottles in her backpack and zips it to prevent the contents from spilling out.  
I shouldn't worry about all this, but somehow it's a pity that such a beautiful girl spoils herself. Okay, I should forget this topic and let her live as she wants to. And it's time for me to go, in half an hour I have to be at Selena's house.


	2. Chapter 2

"POV HARRY"  
By five in the evening I set off to Selena's house. It turned out that she lives far enough from me. Thank God I have a navigator in my phone. Thanks to it, I quickly got my bearings and got on the right road.  
I walked for about seven minutes and then turned off. Honestly, I was surprised by this repetition, because nothing leads there. There is not even the slightest path. It was already getting dark, and in front of me only a forest was visible. Soon I saw a little glow. It turned out to be light coming from the windows of the house. After checking the number on the house and the address Selena had given me, I knocked on the door. The answer came immediately. Selena opened the door and dragged me inside. Everything was dark around, the light was burning only in the farthest room of the corridor. Selena raised a finger to her lips and motioned me to follow her. I obeyed. As soon as I stepped into the house, a strong smell of alcohol and smoke hit my nostrils. In the hallway, I tripped over something several times and almost fell, but, surprisingly, Selena's room was perfectly clean and smelled fresh and insanely delicious.  
She told me to go into the room first, and she herself went somewhere, though not for long. Her room is furnished with books. On the table I saw an open album. The page showed only a sketch of the drawing, but I can already recognize the silhouettes of a woman and a man, standing with their backs to each other with intertwined fingers.  
I saw Selena return to the room. But what is it in her hands? These are syringes! My eyes widened in horror.  
"Wanna some?" she asked, closing the door and locking it.  
“Uh, no thanks, I don’t do that.” I backed away.  
Selena's face was filled with confusion, she looked at me inquiringly, but when she saw where my gaze fell, she sighed with relief.  
"Oh, no, I'm not talking about that. I brought a cola, do you want it?" she said, going up to the table.  
"No, no, thanks", I smiled a little.  
“Look, I know that there are not very good rumors about me at school, but it's all not true,” she said, sitting down at the table opposite me.  
"Why then?"  
“Sorry, I can't talk about it,” she lowered her eyes.  
"I don't understand why you are doing all this. You have everything: health, friends, a good family. For what reason do you do this?"  
“You don't know me to judge,” her voice became stern.  
“I've known you for damn eleven years! You just pretend to be quiet so that they love you, feel sorry for you, and then you seduce them and turn them into the same addicts like you."  
"But you don't know anything!" tears rolled from her eyes!  
"No wonder they say that devils are found in a still pool. This is just about you!" I could no longer restrain myself and switched to screaming.  
"Why do you believe all the rumors?" This time she started screaming too.  
Suddenly the knob of the room began to twitch wildly, and a deafening scream was heard from the corridor.  
"Why the hell are you shutting up there again? I've already told you a million times not to do this", Suddenly the door flies off its hinges and flies straight to the floor, landing near our feet. Shards of the door fly in different directions, damaging things from Selena's room.  
A terrible man appeared in front of my eyes.  
"It will be a lesson to you." He said, and then added. "Who is this? What the devil are you taking all sorts of guys in here?"  
"We are doing a project about chemistry with him! You won't let me go anywhere, so I called him here!"  
"Of course, I know your "projects". You are as much a whore as your mother! I walked you up and faded away, and now I am suffering here with you. I still lacked that you brought me happiness in the belly", the man yelled so loudly that his voice began to break.  
"What do you offer me now? It is not my fault that we were forced to work in pairs!" Selena was already trembling in hysterics.  
The man took a pack of pills from the shelf and pulled out one. Then he went up to Selena and held out his hand: "Swallow! I don't need another one like you and your mother!"  
Choking on her tears, she obeyed.  
"And you", he turned to me, "Get out of my house! And so that I never see you here again!"  
After what I saw, I was scared to leave Selena here, but if I didn't leave now, he would get even more angry. I took one last look at the girl, she was sitting on the floor, hugging her legs and hiding her face in her knees. She cried and trembled with horror, huddled in the corner of the room.  
The man came up to me and grabbed my elbow. With all his might, he threw an empty vodka bottle on the floor in front of Selena's feet. It crashed, and fragments flew in all directions. The man pushed me out of the room and then out of the house.  
On the street, I hid behind a tree under the windows of Selena's room.  
"I hate you. Why did you come into this world at all?" the man shouted again.  
The lights in the room went out. A minute later, it lit up in another room, and there appeared the silhouette of a fat, short man. He lay down on the sofa and soon fell asleep.  
I left the hideout and looked through the window of Selena's room. She had already fallen asleep, being in the same position in which I saw her last time.


	3. Chapter 3.

"POV HARRY"  
The next day I came to school early as always. Usually Selena comes before everyone else, and now I understand why. But today she was gone. Our first lesson is the ill-fated chemistry. But Selena is nowhere to be seen. All our classmates have already arrived, even those who are always late, and Selena is still not here. Had she and her dad managed to quarrel even more overnight?

"Where is Selena? Does anyone know?" the teacher broke the silence, but no one answered. "So strange, she never missed classes. Probably some important reason."  
“She wrote to me that she was not feeling well,” Ashley raised her hand.

Ashley Cook is Selena's friend, or might say even the best friend. They are together constantly.

"Okay, the main thing is to tell her what we will be going through today", the teacher put in, burying himself in his sheet of paper. "So, I hope you managed to prepare your projects. Please submit them in turn."

The class obeyed. Each couple, one after another, began to go out to the board and talk about the chemical element, its properties, applications, and so on. Selena and I never had time to do this damn project, but after what I saw, I simply would not have had the audacity and courage to tell her something about it, so I did everything myself. As always. But this time the reason is really valid.  
As soon as I wanted to go to the blackboard, the teacher said that those whose partners did not come today will perform next time. Honestly, I don't even know if I'm happy or not. Thank God the lesson soon ended, and with the bell I jumped off my desk and rushed to Ashley.

"Uh, Ashley, hello!"  
"What do you want?!" I am quite surprised by this manner of communication.  
"Do you know where Selena is? What happened to her?"  
"I said in class that she is not feeling well. What is not clear?" My interlocutor barcked.  
"I got it, but why?" I insisted.  
“I don’t know why, and I don’t want to know. Get off already from me", she pushed me with force and rushed menacingly away from the class.  
“Okay, maybe she’s just having a bad day,” I thought.

Going out into the corridor, I heard a familiar voice. "Why the hell didn't you come today? I don't care what's wrong with your father, you had to do my homework!" This time she is even angrier than she was with me. "Now I don't need it anymore! I'll write off some freaks!" Apparently, she's talking about math, because this is our last lesson for today. “You're in my debt now, baby,” was the last thing she said before hanging up. I decided to wait a little and stand where I was so that she would not think I was eavesdropping. The girl swore at someone several times and said that she hates everyone. "Hmm, everyone hates you," I whispered, but she seemed to hear it.

"Ugh, you again? What do you want in the end? Go where you went", she began to grumble like an old grandmother. "Although wait, give me your maths, you know, I will not ask twice".  
"And for it you will stop blackmailing Selena! Leave her alone!" I protested.  
"Since when do you care about her?"  
"That should not be of your concerns. Let's agree that I will always do your homework if you lag behind her?" I suggested such a compromise.  
“Yes, but if you break your word, then you and your precious Selena will suffer” she held out her index finger, trying to threaten me.  
I hurriedly took my math notebook out of my backpack and threw it in Ashley's face.  
The only words from this villain that made me think were "Since when do you care about her?" Indeed, since when? We talked with her for only one day, and I had already managed to deliver an ultimatum to her best friend, to quarrel with her father and get into trouble, in which I had not previously taken part from the word "at all". Perhaps because she opened up to me, and I know her from a completely different side. With the one with which no one knows. I feel so awful for almost calling her an alcoholic then, even though I didn't even have the slightest idea about her life. I have to apologize for this, so why wasting time? I'll go right now! I don't give a damn about this math, I don't need it anyway.  
It takes about half an hour to get from school to Selena's house, but considering the fact that I first took the bus to the main street and then ran, then the whole journey took me ten minutes.  
When I reached my destination, I was about to knock on the door, when I came to my senses and pulled my hand away. Thank God the window in Selena's room was open, and I easily made my way inside. She was not inside; I sat down at the desk so as not to inadvertently make any noise. Footsteps were heard from afar, and soon she entered the room. From surprise, Selena jumped on the spot, and then twisted a displeased grimace.

"What are you doing here? Haven't you seen enough yesterday?" she furiously approached me.  
"You were not in class today, I was worried, I never know what could happen, I got up from the chair.  
"Well, you see, everything is in order. You can go", She pointed to the door.  
"Did you drink?" I narrowed my eyes.  
"Yes! You yourself said yesterday that I am an alcoholic and the most terrible person in the world! Here's proof of that!"  
"I didn't mean it-" I didn't have time to finish.  
"Yes, all of you do not mean what you say, yup!" She interrupted me.  
"Calm down please!" I came closer to her, but she stepped back. “You know that there are not very good rumors about you. I believed them, but after yesterday I realized that all this was just a splash."

She opened the closet and took out a bottle of vodka. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that she was not the only one there. Now I am seriously confused. So maybe she still bought these bottles for herself?

“You’ve had enough to drink for today,” I said, and resolutely took the bottle from her.  
"I just started!"Selena snapped and tried to take her value back from me. "What the hell are you doing this? Give it back! What difference does it make to you?"  
"You will ruin your life!" I switched to a louder tone.  
"It's already ruined!" she screamed just as loudly.  
"Alcohol is not an option!"  
"Yes, it can't do it alone".  
"At this rate, you will soon be dead!"  
"And maybe that's exactly what I want?" suddenly tears rolled from her eyes, and it completely knocked all thoughts out of my head.

I quickly walked over to her, tried to take her hands, but she managed to dodge. And yet I was quicker and hugged her from behind around her shoulders. She started crying even more. I gently pulled us back and sat with my back against the wall, seating Selena on my lap.

"Please do not cry. You are strong, you have been going through this for several years now", I began.  
"Exactly, this ... continues ... already ... almost ... all ... my ... life", Selena began to stutter and made a long pause between words, "I ... already ... so ... tired ... of ... this ... everything".

With one hand on I dug a bottle of water in my briefcase and handed it to Selena. She accepted it and barely took a sip, and then continued her story. I did not interrupt and interrupt her monologue, because I understand that she needs to speak out.

"Recently I have already reached the limit, my father is screaming without stopping, every day he brings home his friends and all sorts of women. I go to school and back, because he forbids going anywhere else, otherwise he will beat me, this has happened more than once. Yes, even at school there is no rest. My father is in debt to Ashley's father, and Ashley only uses me for her own benefit" She started crying even more and her body began to tremble in hysterics.

Hugging, I pressed her body to mine, holding down her movements.

"I never had friends in my life and I fight like this in hysterics every single day", she slowly began to calm down.  
"We have known each other for eleven years, I saw you in class every day, but I never even suspected that you could have such a difficult story behind your back."

Tears were still streaming from her eyes. And I pressed my left cheek to her right cheek and stroked her head. “We can handle it, together!” I said, and she turned to face me: “You don’t have to do this,” she looked down. "I don't have to, but I want it." Now Selena turned fully towards me, still sitting on my lap, and hugged me tightly. We sat in silence, only breathing and the barely audible rustle from the fact that I stroked Selena's back broke the silence.  
I don't know how much time passed, and how long we sat like that, but we broke away from each other only when a door slammed somewhere on the side.

"Father has come! You'd better leave. Thank you very much for coming and supporting me! It means a lot!" Selena said, getting to her feet.  
“I would have stayed and talked to your father, but I don’t want you to have problems because of me again,” I smiled, getting up from the floor.

Selena thanked again and I deftly climbed through the window, like last time a couple of hours ago.

"POV SELENA"  
I stood by the window and looked into it until Harry was out of sight. He still had time to wave goodbye to me a couple of times from the street.  
I managed to sit down at my desk and open my textbook, just at the moment when a boozy, angry father burst into the room.


	4. Chapter 4.

"POV SELENA"  
I tried to catch my breath as quickly as possible. My heart is beating like mad. I understand that my father will now start yelling at me again, he is digging into everything that is only possible and impossible.

"You brought that freak here again? What did I tell you about this?" Father hit the table with force, forcing me to jump up and hit my knee on a tree. The pain quickly spread all over the leg, making it numb. "Answer when I'm talking to you!" He spoke even louder.  
"He's not a freak! He and I have lessons in chemistry, mathematics and a few more subjects together!" I felt it necessary to stand up for my new friend.  
"Isn't it too often that your "classmate" began to come here?" the father drew quotes in the air.  
"No need to wave your fingers! He's really my classmate and he comes here because we were given a project that we had to hand over today-'' I didn't have time to finish the sentence because he interrupted me.  
"So what's the problem? You don't fucking study at all, you drag all sorts of ghouls into the house!"  
"What is the problem?" it pissed me off, "The problem is you! You don't allow me to go anywhere and even stay at school after lessons, you also forbid me to bring anyone here. What the fuck am I supposed to do?"  
"Watch your language, you are not talking to a friend!"  
"Because I don't have any friends", I started yelling at the top of my voice, and I didn't care a bit that someone might hear, because our house is hidden so far from civilization that hardly anyone will find it, "And all because of you! You ruined my whole life!"  
"And I didn't want you to be born at all! I made your mother have an abortion, but no, she knows everything better than anyone. And what, where is this bitch is now?" the father also started screaming.  
"Why can you bring all sorts of whores into your house, but I can't invite a classmate for homework without your hysterics at least once?"  
"Who are you just now called a hysteric?" Before I could realize what had happened, my father gave me a strong slap in the face. Tears flowed from my eyes involuntarily. "And yes, I bring them, because this is my house and I do whatever I want here! And yes, my patience is gone! Get out of here so I never hear or see you again. I absolutely don't care about you and what will happen to you!"  
I hurriedly got up from the table and began to collect my things in a huge backpack. All this happened under the gaze of this monster.  
Having collected all the essentials, I ran out of the room, along the corridor to the exit from the house. While I was turning the lock in an attempt to unlock the door, he reappeared beside me. In one motion, he opened the door open and, hitting the back of the head, pushed me out of the house.  
Breaking free, I ran as fast as my strength allowed me. Behind me, I heard a man's voice screaming at me: "I hate you! May God let you die, little bitch."  
After running a couple of miles, I slowed down, and then stopped altogether. I have nowhere to go, so I decided to stay here. Thanks God, it's really warm in Holmes Chapel in this time os year. I sat on the green grass, hugging my legs and bowing my head. I don’t know how long I sat like that, but it was already getting light a little.  
Suddenly, an incredible idea came to my mind, and I, without hesitation, decided to take a chance. Thanks God, my orientation is all right and I quickly found my way home. After making sure that my father was asleep, I hid my briefcase behind a tree and silently climbed into the house. For the last time I entered my room, in which I spent my entire life, I took out my stock of vodka from the far wardrobe, of which only three bottles remained. Returning to the hallway, I dug a pack of cigarettes and a lighter in my father's jacket, and threw them into a bag which was already full with vodka. The lighter hit the bottles, making a clang. I was alert and held my breath. Quiet, apparently, he did not hear. Now the most difficult thing was ahead: I needed to get into the hall and pick up the phone. This was easier than I expected. The TV was screaming at full volume, and the phone was on the nightstand across the room from my father. Money with a bank card was lying next to them. I could not help but take this chance, and squeezing the valuables in my right hand, hurried out of the room. Putting the "treasure" all in the same bag, I tried to raise it as quietly as possible and left the house. This time forever.

"POV HARRY"  
I came to school earlier than usual. Luckily for me, Selena was already there. I went up to her, she was sitting at a desk, with her head down. Her face was covered with a huge hood. In principle, nothing out of the ordinary.

“Hi,” I said, sitting down at my desk right in front of Selena.  
“Oh, uh, hi,” she muttered without looking up.  
"Are you mad at me?" I asked unexpectedly for both.  
"No, is there's something I should be mad at you for?" She lowered her hooves a little and our gazes met for a moment. I saw her eyes for the first time, they are full of pain.  
"Have your father yelled at you again?"  
"He yells at me every day. This is absolutely normal in our house" she stared at her desk again.  
"But this is completely abnormal!"

Further, our dialogue could not continue normally, because classmates burst into the classroom, and a noise began.  
I turned to the blackboard just as the teacher entered the classroom. Chemistry. Again. Why is it so often? We're not like chemists.

"Oh Miss Gomez, good morning! Glad to see you! How are you? Is everything alright?" the teacher asked with a smile on his face, to which Selena slightly shook her head in her usual manner. "Well, then while everyone still has a lot of energy, let's check the projects of the remaining couples. Mr. Styles, Miss Gomez, please", the teacher said, pointing to the board.  
I slowly got up from the chair, Selena looked at me in bewilderment. I handed her a piece of paper and shook my head a little. She followed my example, got up from her chair and walked to the center of the class.  
Suddenly there were chuckles from the class.

"Hey, Gomez, didn’t make it to the toilet?"  
"You need to wear panpers."  
"Even a baby is more accurate".

I didn't understand what this was about, but these comments pissed me off. My palms involuntarily clenched into fists, and I was about to scream at the whole class to keep their mouths shut, as the teacher, as if he had read my thoughts, forced the class to calm down.  
Throughout the performance I stood agitated, it seemed that if even the slightest rustle was heard now, I would explode into thousands of fragments.  
Selena and I took turns reading our report. I marked in advance where whose part is, in order to navigate faster. When I fell silent and my partner stepped in, I gave everyone in this class a contemptuous look. At the end of our speech, I have already drawn conclusions about who was not sitting quietly.

"Thank you for such an informative report! You can take your seats" the teacher said and called the next couple.

As we walked behind the desks, I understood why everyone was laughing at Selena. It's not really nice action from me to look at this part of her body, but it just attracts attention. There was a brown stain in the center of her black pants. It confused me, there must be some reason for this, and the dumb classmates laugh for no reason. I don't see anything funny.  
I had no desire to write down anything today, so I took out my phone and went to Facebook. The first thing that surfaced in my news was a photo of Selena with a stain on her butt. I do not know who posted this picture, but I started to file a complaint about it until my account was temporarily blocked for repeated actions. Unfortunately, the photo has already scattered, and now, probably, the whole school is laughing and coming up with all sorts of stupid nicknames for Selena.  
Thanks God, the bell soon rang and the lesson ended. Throwing my notebooks in my portfolio, I saw that Selena was already leaving the class. I wanted to run after her, but I was stopped me. Olivia. I've been in love with her since third grade. She did not pay any attention to me, because she is one of the most popular girls in school and she is not interested in people like me. In such rare moments as now, when she did decide to talk to me, I lose touch with reality.

"Oh, Harry, hi," she chuckled. “I'm throwing a party and I want you to come.

Her blue eyes gazed into mine. Every time it happened, I always agreed, whatever it was.  
So this time, I could not overcome myself and mechanically agreed.

“Oh, yes,” her friend Megan spoke this time. "And bring your friend Selena".  
“Yes, yes, let her come too, we will be very glad to see her,” Olivia said.  
“She’s unlikely to want to come,” I muttered.  
"Maybe we ourselves will talk to her", Bella got into the conversation, and her friends gave her a spiteful look.  
"Okay, Harry, see you! I'll throw off all the details on Friday night!" She gently ran her hand over my cheek and left, accompanied by her gang.

Olivia, Megan and Bella are the main stars of the school. Olivia's parents work with celebrities, they have huge connections and VIP passes to any event and God knows what else. Parents of Megan and Bella work together in the largest company engaged in the production and publication of magazines "Vogue". As you can imagine, this whole trinity is closely related. Not surprisingly, their children have been on several covers of this magazine.  
Olivia, Megan and Bella never deny themselves anything. They spend a decent amount of time and money on themselves. It pays off, they are very beautiful on the outside, but, as usual, they are nasty on the inside. They are ready to go to any lengths to get what they want, and in most cases they succeed.

I understand that I was again thrown around the finger. Those blue eyes, blonde long hair, graceful gait drive me crazy.

"Mister Styles, why haven't you left yet? Has something happened?" that same teacher brought me out of my thoughts, for which many thanks to him.  
"Oh, oh .. no, sorry, I was just thinking", muttered and hurried to the exit from the class. "Goodbye!"

I wasn't so lucky with lessons today. Remained physical education, English and mathematics.  
In physical education we played basketball, which I like so time passed quickly and cheerfully. In English, I thought I was going to sleep. Mrs. Hall is long overdue for retirement, she forgets half of what she tells us in class. We forget the remaining half, because it is impossible to listen to monotonous speech for an hour in a row.  
Ashley caught me in the hallway in front of the math.

"Well, where is my homework?" I handed her a completely covered sheet of paper. "Great!" the girl screamed.  
"Wait", I stopped the interlocutor, "Where is Selena?"  
"I dont know. We have a contract, don't you forget? You do my assignments, I don't folllow Selena. I keep my word". I nodded my head in understanding and Ashley walked away.

In mathematics, I did absolutely everything except mathematics. Time passed as luck would have it.  
An hour later, I finally was freed and was already walking down the street lit by sunlight. The weather was amazing! I didn't want to go home at all, so I decided to go to the eatery. It is located in a small city park not far from the school, where students often hang out.  
As soon as I opened the door, my nostrils immediately felt the strong aroma of coffee. I ordered a vanilla latte and sat down at a table. Having nothing to do, I took my phone out of my pocket and went to Facebook. Only now I realized that I do not have Selena as a friend. In the search, I typed in her first and last name, but someone's figure distracted me from the phone. I locked the screen and looked at the person.

"Hi. Do you mind if I sit down with you?"  
"Oh, Selena, hello", I was surprised to see her here. "Yes, of course".  
"Thank you", she still walked with the hood pulled over her head. Only now I realized that I had never seen her face normally, she even hides it at home.  
"How are you doing?" I asked.  
"I'm fine, and you?" she answered quietly, staring at the table.  
"And what about your father? Did he let you go here?"  
"Let's just say, now I do not depend on him."

"POV SELENA"  
Harry asks too many questions.

"Listen, do you have a phone charger?" I decided to move the topic.  
"Yes, yes I do", Harry reached into his briefcase and pulled out a white wire from there, "Here you go".

I thanked him. Fortunately, this eatery has an outlet for every table. I took advantage of this and put the phone on charge.

"Give me your number," Harry said suddenly.  
“I don’t have any” I replied briefly.  
"How is that? Here is the phone, there must be a number".  
“This is my father’s phone, I stole it.” Harry’s face was clearly confused.  
"Aren't you afraid that he will go into a rage?"  
"I don't care, I don't live with him anymore. And I will destroy this SIM card so that they cannot find me".  
"Where do you live?" Harry's eyes widened.  
"In the hostel", it's true. I was just about to charge my phone and look for housing.  
"In which?" Harry did not stop.  
"Why does it care you?"  
"Yes.. oh, I mean no, just wondering."

I couldn't answer anything more than: "I see." After that we sat in silence.  
Harry asked a couple more questions to defuse the situation. Fifteen minutes later we left the eatety. I handed Harry his phone charge and was already turning around to go "home" when I felt someone grab my wrist. It was Harry, obviously.

"I know that you do not have a SIM card, but you look like you have a plan. So here", Harry handed me a folded sheet, "There is my number. Please call if you feel bad. I will always be here for you."


	5. Chapter 5.

"POV HARRY"  
I handed Selena a small piece of paper on which I had written my number a long time ago. She accepted it and smiled faintly.

We said goodbye and parted on different sides. I usually get bored of just walking, so I always listen to music. This time I also decided to do the same. I pulled the briefcase off my back, quickly fumbled for the headphone cable and connected it to the phone. As soon as I unlocked my phone to enable songs, my Facebook page appeared in front of my eyes. Exactly! And I completely forgot that I was trying to find Selena's account, but she, herself, distracted me from it. I stopped in the middle of the path, staring at the phone screen. The search engine gave no results. I'm not surprised, considering the fact that Selena herself just a couple of minutes ago told me that she didn't have a phone. I closed facebook and opened spotify. Recently, I have already got bored with everything, even my favorite songs do not bring me pleasure. I decided to listen to what Spotify recommends to me based on my taste. Thinking about something of my own and listening to music, I wandered home.

Fortunately, no one was at home. Immediately from the doorway, I went to the kitchen. I pulled the headphones out of the phone, turned on the TV, poured milk into a bowl, and covered it with cereal. Today I don't feel like doing anything, I can let myself be lazy at least once in a lifetime. When I turned on the TV, the music channel immediately appeared on the screen. Apparently, except for me, no one was watching anything today. I am obsessed with music. When all my peers watch Netflix, I watch MTV, VH1 and many more similar channels. Basically, they play video clips of singers, broadcast awards and "create" new stars. I would really like to be there, because I am madly in love with music and would like to connect my life with it. I am a member of the school music group "White Eskimo", I am the lead singer, actually. The guys and I perform at every school concert, but besides that, we try to advance outside the school. We have already won a couple of city competitions, and this gives me hope and strength to continue chasing my dreams.

An insanely loud sound brought me out of my thoughts. I jumped in surprise and poured milk and cereal on the table. "Fucking advertisements," I muttered, "Why, when you watch the programs themselves, you need to strain your ears to hear at least something, but you can hear advertisements even in silent mode." As luck would have it, there were no rags nearby, it looks like my mother is up to cleaning house again. Taking a deep breath, I trudged to the utility room, which is located on the opposite side of the house. Our long corridor is lined with photographs. I don't usually pay attention to them because I've seen them a thousand times already, but today something caught my attention. On both walls, in a row, there are children's photos of me and my older sister Gemma, our first photos from the hospital where we were born, the first tooth that fell out, the first day at school, the first achievements, graduation from elementary school, graduation from middle school, annual school photos. I never understood why my mother was doing all this, but, apparently, it is important for her. There are a little more photos of Gemma here, because she is older and has already graduated from high school and entered university. In a year, my photographs will take their proper place. Mom captured our entire life on footage, from the first breath to the moment in which we are all now. For the first time in a long time, I decided to look at these images again. Many of them made me smile, I was a very funny child. Oh, what is it? Below my portrait shot for the first grade are inserted a few more pictures from the series "Me and my class. First time in first grade". There we shared photos with my classmates, then we were five or six years old. In the very corner, hidden behind the backs of tall boys, stands a girl. I knew immediately who it was. In fact, I was horrified by this fact. A five-year-old girl stands in a hood that completely hides her face. It was only at the sight of this photograph that I realized that I had never seen Selena's face. None of us saw. Yes, at first we tried to somehow pull this hood off her, but then we hammered it. And for all these eleven years, no one even had an idea what she looked like. Yes, I did not even think about it, because she was always quiet, everyone always forgot about her. I quickly looked at the photographs from the following years - everything is the same. Have I really never seen her face? I rushed to my room, dug eleven school yearbooks from the bottom drawer in the desk and spread them on the floor. Since the very first grade, Selena has been featured in a hoodie with huge hoods over her face. I carefully studied all the photos, and realized that I don't even know what her hair color is. During all this time, nothing has changed. Nothing but one detail. Now her yellow, pink hoodies and light blue jeans have been replaced by black hoodies and black pants, which doesn't seem like a good sign to me. I don’t even know how to help her, I don’t have her number, no address, nothing.

"Harry, my darling, what has happened here?" a native voice was heard from the first floor. Mom returned home.

I went down to her.

"Oh, I completely forgot" I hit my forehead with my palm. "I accidentally knocked over the plate when an advertisement suddenly turned on.

“He laid out school yearbooks in his room. Fell in love, hike", Gemma entered the kitchen.  
"Why do you think I fell in love? I just went to get a rag to wipe the table".  
"Who is this lucky girl? Or maybe the lucky boy?" Gemma laughed.  
"Harry, by the way, do you still like Olivia? As a child, you gave her every day all sorts of toys, sweets, crafts", mom got into the conversation.  
"Oh, why are you hanging on to me then? Well, yes, Olivia was my childhood crush, but I don't like her now", I turned to my sister and continued, "I don't like anyone".  
"Well, where is the rag?" Gemma grinned, and I again hit my forehead with my palm.

The long-haired girl took an apple out of the refrigerator, whispered in my ear: "You are so in love, in love!", Winked and left the kitchen.

"Harry, do you really like someone?" Mom hugged me.  
“Mooooom, no,” I sighed with slight irritation.  
"Okay, okay, I won't bother you. But know that we will always support you in every you decision".

I barely smiled, nodded, muttered "Yeah, thanks" and went to my room. And since then today I never left my room.

The next morning I was woken up by the alarm clock. I didn't feel like getting up at all, so I decided to lie in bed a little longer. Unfortunately, this did not last long, because the alarm clock also rang in the next room. My sister never gets up, she doesn't care that music is screaming at her ear, she still continues to sleep. The first thing I do every morning is go to her room and wake her up. Every day she screams at me for the fact that I go into the women's room without asking, she says I never know what she does there, what if she suddenly walks naked. Today, as usual, I got out of bed, frowning and reluctantly trudged to Gemma. As usual, she sleeps and hears nothing. I turned off the alarm, woke her up, and the same story repeated again.

In less than an hour I was already at school. This time I came before everyone else. Soon, classmates came up. Everyone except Selena. Where is she?

“So guys, let's start the lesson,” the teacher said. And again chemistry. God, will it ever end? Every time we have a chemistry lesson, something unpleasant happens. I’m even scared to imagine what will happen this time.

This lesson seemed insanely long. I didn't know what else I could do with myself. Chemistry is not an option either. For a long time now, no one has been working in our lessons and listening to teachers. I barely sat through chemistry, and there are five more lessons ahead.

I barely survived all of today's classes. It seemed that this day lasted longer than a whole week, although it was already coming to an end.

When the bell finally rang, signaling the end of the last lesson, my portfolio was already fully assembled. Like a bullet, I flew out of the classroom and rushed down the corridor to the exit from the school. On the way, I connected the headphones to the phone and again decided to listen to what the spotify offers me.

I didn't want to go home, so I decided to take a walk. Half an hour later, without realizing it, I am standing surrounded by trees, in a place to which even the slightest path does not lead. I don't know what motivates me, but I went further, skirting the tall trees. And now I am already standing on the threshold of a small house. As soon as I took hold of the door handle, turned it and opened the door a little, someone called from behind me. This voice belongs to a girl, and at the same time it seems insanely familiar, but at the same time insanely alien. I turned around and saw Selena.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.  
"Did you drink?" I answered her with a question to the question, but it was ignored.  
"Get out of here!" Selena ordered.  
"Why?" She ignored my question. Instead, the girl turned around and, staggering slightly, set off in the opposite direction from me, leaving me alone with the creak coming from the rugs in her house. Quickly realizing, I trudged after her.

"Don't follow me!" Selena ordered.  
"You can barely walk! I can't leave you here!" I shouted.  
"Leave where? This is my home, I can take care of myself!"  
"Selena!" I grabbed her wrist, but she pulled free and quickened her pace.

A couple of minutes later, I called her again in a stern voice. This time Selena stopped abruptly, I did not have time to react in time and ran into my interlocutor. We both flew to the ground. For the first few moments, neither of us had time to digest what had happened, and I was lying on top of Selena. The very next second, she pushed me away with all her powers, and now I am lying on my back on the bare ground. The girl, without delay, got to her feet and with a confident step walked in the same direction that she had been walking before. I followed her example and did the same. I keep a distance of about seven steps, giving her the opportunity to show me the way. We crossed the rest of the road in silence. It seemed that we had already walked around the whole forest, when suddenly Selena stopped again, and like the last time, I ran into her and we both fell right into the mud. Now she immediately pushed me away from her, and I, in turn, rolled off her and pressed my back to the bare ground. Selena lifted her body and sat with her back facing me, propping her chin on her elbows. The hood flew off her head, but she immediately pulled it back on.

"Lord, are you fucking serious? Again?" Selena screamed.  
"Sorry, I didn't do it on purpose", I tried to make excuses, but she didn't even listen to me.  
"You could already get used to it!" snapped my interlocutor. "Now everyone will laugh at me again!" She dropped her face to her knees.  
"Are you aware of this?" I widened my eyes in surprise.  
"Of course, I know. I'm not as dumb as you think" she muttered.  
“Uhm”, Selena chuckled, and I punched myself in the face. Lord, how I hate my classmates! They always start to gossip and discuss everyone and everything, even without having the slightest idea about anything in the world!  
“If it makes you feel better, then I'm dirty too. Look", I got to my feet and circled around myself, showing my T-shirt and jeans, completely soaked in mud.  
"At least you have a place to wash all this! And I have just put on the last clean jeans and hoodie, and all down the drain! It would be much better if I haven't changed clothes at all!" She raised her head and now her gaze was directed somewhere forward, into the forest distance. A second later, the girl bent down and pulled out a bottle of vodka hidden behind a tree trunk.

"Why do you never show your face?" my question was ignored. Instead, Selena deftly opened the lid and poured the contents of the bottle into her mouth. “Well, at least now I know the color of your hair,” I shrugged.  
“You saw my father. How did you expect to see me?" my interlocutor grinned.  
"Why are you drinking?" I decided to change the subject. "This will not save you from problems!"  
"But it relieves pain at least for a while!" she said indifferently.  
"But this is not an option at all!" I protested.  
"I do not care. I always drank, I drink and I will drink forever. You don't know me at all! I'm rotten to the core! Enough with me already!"

I looked at Selena, examined her clothes, and suddenly it dawned on me.

"What are you doing here? You said you lived in a hostel".

"POV SELENA"  
Harry asks too many questions. Well, what does he want from me? Why does he stick with me?

"Well, something happened", I answered simply.  
"And you live right here? Outdoors?" he did not let up.  
"Right here, on the streets", I didn't want to say this, but, apparently, alcohol affects me so much. I am not in control of my thoughts and actions.  
"And what do you think to do next?" the guy narrowed his eyes.  
"And that's what! Look!" I happily proclaimed and poured more vodka into my mouth. Harry's eyes widened. "Do you want?" I offered him.

He nodded and I handed him the bottle. Without hesitation, he poured the remains on the ground. My jaw dropped from surprise.

“I don’t drink,” the guy concluded.  
“Well, okay, I'll get more,” she shrugged and took out another bottle from the same place.

I cleverly opened the plug. I used to mess with them for a long time, but after a couple of drunk bottles, I am already a professional in this matter.

As soon as the cork landed on the ground, Harry snatched the bottle from my hands and also poured everything on the ground.

"Hey! It was the last!" I screamed in rage, and rushed at Harry with fists, but he managed to dodge and put me back on the ground.

"POV HARRY"  
"Enough to control me already! Nobody will ever change me anyway!" Selena screamed at the top of her voice.  
"Who is there? Show yourself, freaks. You are preventing me from sleeping!" Suddenly there was a rough male voice, and Selena and I immediately understood who it belonged to.  
I grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards me. She began to resist.

"What are you doing? Leave me alone!" she, discouraged, screamed.  
"We are going home!" I shouted at her, forcing her to be quiet.  
“I’m not coming home for anything in the world!" She stamped her foot.  
"I'm not going to take you to your house, we are coming to mine!"  
"Selena! Little bitch! I hear you. Are you with your boyfriend? You better get out of here, or I'll kill you both!" Selena's father said again.  
"I will not go to you either!" This time she spoke in a whisper.  
"Enough already! You have no where to go, and you cannot live on the street!" I pulled her wrist again, and this time the girl gave in to me.  
"Let me go, I can go on my own".  
“I'm sorry, Selena, but I don't trust you. You will run away, so it’s better to let it be, it makes me feel better".

Our "journey" lasted about forty-seven minutes. Selena continued to struggle and yell at me. Most of the time, I did not pay attention to her, only in places with an increased crowd of people I periodically whished at the girl so that no one would suspect anything.

I think we are already getting attention. Two people are walking, completely covered in mud, from whom they carry alcohol a kilometer away, and they are walking and swearing all over the street. Yes, we definitely did not go unnoticed.

At the turn to my house, Selena stopped me.

"Since we are already here anyway, I want none of your relatives to know about me and that I am here", said the girl.  
“Okay, only then will we have to climb through the window,” I said, pointing to the spiral staircase leading to the second floor. Selena nodded in agreement. Fortunately, it was already dark outside, so we quietly made our way through the courtyard and reached the stairs. There I made sure several times that Selena was holding on tightly, and crawled after her to support her in case she suddenly breaks down. Because of alcohol, many people become weak, but this is clearly not about Selena, she, on the contrary, becomes strong and fighting like a bull.  
Once in the room, I showed her what was where. I have a private bathroom and toilet in the room, so one less problem.

"Harry, are you there?" Mom knocked on the door.  
"Uh, yes, I'm here".  
"Come down and eat your supper."

I shook my head to Selena, allowing her to do whatever she wants and left the room.

At supper, I ate as quickly as possible and, of course, I got the family's attention. Citing a bunch of homework, I brought another plate of potato casserole with me into my room under the pretext of adding. When I came back, I saw Selena, who curled up in a ball on the floor and fell asleep. I put the casserole on the table, signed on a small piece of paper: "For Selena." I easily dragged the girl onto the bed, and I lay down on the floor and immediately fell asleep. Still, today was a hard and long day. And the chemistry is to blame. Again.


	6. Chapter 6.

"POV HARRY"   
I woke up in the middle of the night for no reason, as if something made me get up. The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was a figure standing near the window. I'm not going to lie, for a fraction of an instant I was scared, but, quickly remembering what had happened, jumped to my feet and grabbed the guest by the wrist. 

"This is already becoming a common thing, don't you think?" Selena muttered, looking at my hand gripping her wrist.  
"Sorry, but you make me do it", I shrugged. "Better tell me, where are you going again?"  
"I have to go!" the girl answered severely.  
“You don’t even have anywhere to go!”  
“I need to go to the store,” she mumbled, trying to free herself from my grasp.  
"The shops are still closed", I looked at the alarm clock on the bedside table, it has not yet rang, "It's not even five o'clock, all the shops are closed", Selena did not answer to this, I softened a little. "What do you want to buy there? We have everything at home".  
“I need something that I can't tell you,” she looked down; I don’t blame Selena, she has a difficult life, it’s hard for her to open up to anyone, "We will go to the store in the morning".  
"We?"  
"Yes, I can't let you go alone, I'm sorry".  
"But-", the girl wanted to say something, but I did not give her the opportunity.   
"Please do not argue with me", I took a deep breath. "And go to sleep", I pointed to the bed.   
Selena lowered her gaze and looked at her hand. I took her hint and immediately loosened my grip. The girl immediately removed her hand and confidently walked towards the bed, bypassing me in front. 

“You know, I can sleep on the floor, and you lie down on your bed,” she said sharply.  
"No, no, go to bed yourself, I have already slept enough", I defiantly lit a desk lamp and sat down in a chair, picking up the first book I came across. Of course I lied. I’m madly sleepy, but I don’t trust this lady because I know she can run away. I decided not to risk and ignore her. Selena grunted and lay down on the edge of the bed. So what should I do? I took a comfortable position in the chair and opened the book. I started to read, but did not understand anything that is written there. Is it because I want to sleep, so my brain refuses to accept any information? I pulled myself together and concentrated a little. I started reading from the beginning. I read it once, twice, thrice - to no avail. It feels like I'm reading some kind of abstruse article written by a botanist, nothing is clear. I slammed the book shut and glanced at the cover. Damn it! That's why Selena laughed. I grabbed the whole chemistry textbook. This chemistry haunts me everywhere! How I hate it! Five minutes later, I was already sprawled in my chair like a drunken cockroach. My eyes continue to close mercilessly, but I cannot let myself to fell asleep. I want to have a cup of coffee, but I cannot leave the room: Selena is too cunning, I cannot leave her unattended. I must prepare for the next time. I have no idea how I managed to do this, but I didn't close my eyes even for a slightest second. I will not hide, this is not an easy matter. Fortunately, now that the alarm has sounded, I can safely go to the kitchen. Selena, sleepy, raised her head with half-closed eyes, and without a word, fell back into sleep. I decided to take a chance and leave her alone, while I went downstairs. Even from the second floor, my nostrils felt the heady aroma of coffee and the delicate smell of baked goods. My mom bakes delicious pies, croissants, muffins and more. Her talent was passed on to me, and I use it for my own good. On weekends I work in a bakery, for which I get good money. I try to support myself, but on a salary of only two working days a week, there is not much that can be bought. Of course, I am not an assistant to my parents in paying bills for an apartment or buying a new car, but I can buy clothes and other things I need myself without ruining my parents. I like that I do not depend on anyone in this regard, I myself earn my honest work and I myself spend this money. I don't have a lot of expenses. I cannot say that my family is poor, but we also cannot afford everything we want. My mom's dream is a new large house with two floors, several rooms with a separate bathroom for each, with extensive corridors, a large living room and a kitchen. To have a terrace and a courtyard with a pool, as well as a garage. Stepfather wants a new-fangled pickup truck like Ford, GM or Chrysler. I decided that someday I will please them with all this, because they really deserve all the best. 

"Harry, good morning!" Mom met me in the kitchen with a wide smile on her face.   
"Hi, Mom!" I exclaimed and let her kiss me on the cheek.   
"How did you sleep?" Mom returned to the stove, but that beautiful smile still did not leave her face.   
"Well, how about you?" I asked her a counter question, pouring myself a coffee.   
"Also good. Baby, did you start talking again in your sleep?"  
"Mooom, well, I asked you not to call me that", I pouted. "And no, where did you get the idea from that I talk in my sleep?"  
“I heard it myself. You spoke so loudly that it could be heard even from mine and Robin's room. "Unfortunately, because of the walls, I did not understand what this monologue of yours was about", my mother shrugged her shoulders and hugged me slightly. "Next time I will try to delve into the words, maybe so we will understand what worries you.  
"Mom, nothing bothers me", I got out of her embrace. "I spoke with a friend".  
"At three in the morning?" Mom narrowed her eyes.   
"Yes, he had some unforeseen difficulties there".  
"And who is that friend? Do I know him?  
"Yes there, one friend from school. We have chemistry together", I quickly grabbed a cup of coffee in one hand, and with the other I took a handful of my mother’s pastries, and rushed headlong out of the kitchen so that she didn’t have time to ask me something else.   
"Harry, where are you going? We always have breakfast together", the woman called after.   
"Sorry, Mom, I urgently need to finish my homework", I flew out into the corridor and ran into Robin there, wished him good morning and rushed to my room. 

How I hate to lie, but now it is simply necessary. Hope Selena didn't run away while I was walking. I breathed a sigh of relief when I entered the room and saw her. The girl still slept peacefully on my bed. I ate my mom’s three croissants in a raw, then drank my coffee in one gulp. After making sure that the kitchen was finally free, I took another portion from the same set, but this time for Selena. On the way back, my mother was able to notice and stop me.  
“Harry, since you’re here, please bring Gemma her clean clothes to the room", I didn’t have to think long, I nodded in agreement, and she hung several things on my forearm.   
"Thank you, my boy", my mother smiled, to which I quickly nodded and quickly rushed away until she pestered me again.  
“Here's another problem solved", I thought, carefully opening the door with my foot. Not calculating the strength, I loudly slammed the door, from which I woke up Selena. She, discouraged, quickly got out of bed.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, please. I didn’t mean to scare you", I mumbled, freeing my hands from food. "This is for you. My mom baked these croissants, try them, you will definitely like them!" Selena looked down, but her stomach decided to act against her, making a loud rumbling sound. I raised my eyebrows.  
"Come on, don't be shy. Eat, I said", I pointed to the table, and this time she gave in to my persuasion.  
"This is delicious!" she said, chewing the first croissant.  
“If your stomach isn't full enough, then I can bring more, there are many of them”, I assured my guest and laid out on the bed Gemma's things, which my mother asked me to give her. "So, I got some of my sister's clothes here. There are a couple of T-shirts, hoodies, jeans. That's more than enough for the first time", I concluded. I turned to Selena and found her eating food. The girl quietly thanked me and I shook my head. "You can go to the bath, take a shower, and do all kinds of feminine things", Selena chuckled as I pointed to the door opposite the work desk. At such moments, you begin to appreciate your own bathroom. She nodded again, finished the rest of the coffee, grabbed the things I got for her and went off to take water meals.   
Suddenly I remembered that I had not given her a towel, and instantly knocked on the door, hoping that she had not yet had time to undress. The doorknob jerked and Selena's head appeared, in the hood, of course. I closed my eyes just in case, and handed her a towel. She took it, our fingers touched for a moment, and goose bumps went all over my arm, as from an electric shock. I quickly hid my hand behind my back, and the girl closed the door. Soon I heard the sound of pouring water, and I flopped down on a soft chair and stared at the wall. I didn’t notice I was lost in thought. The click of the lock from the door to the bathroom returned me to reality. Selena appeared in front of me in my sister's clothes. Suddenly there was a knock on the room, I unexpectedly pushed Selena back into the bath just at the moment when my mother entered my room. 

"Harry boy, honey, do you have any dirty clothes? Anything you need to wash?" Mom asked with a smile on her face.   
"Uh...yeah...wait a second", I ran into the bathroom, grabbed the dirty clothes from the basket, grabbed Selena's clothes and handed a whole bunch to my mother. "Here, there are a couple of Gemma's things also".  
"Thank you, baby", my mother kissed me on the cheek. "Have a nice day at school!" I shook my head and closed the door as soon as the head of the family left the room.  
"Damn, how I hate to lie!" I said, opening the door to the bathroom, giving Selena a pass.   
“Sorry,” she muttered as she stepped inside. "But why are you keeping me here? I bring you trouble.  
"Do you have somewhere to go?" I raised my eyebrows, and the girl lowered her head.   
"You see, so be here, everything is fine. 

“Your mom is very sweet,” Selena said unexpectedly after seven minutes, breaking our awkward silence.   
“Thank you,” I answered sincerely and looked at her; I don't know what I expected to see, because Selena was still sitting with her head lowered to the floor. "Where is your mother? Why do you live with your father?"  
"She left as soon as I was born. My father took me out of the hospital to receive benefits like a single parent."  
"I'm very sorry that this happened, I'm sorry that I asked", this time I looked down.  
"Okay, that's okay. I have never even seen her in my life, even in photographs, my father burned them all", the girl shrugged.  
"Maybe that's why he is like this? So cruel?"  
“I don’t know, hardly, he’s like that by himself,” Selena glanced at her watch, I noticed her discomfort and embarrassment, and retired to the bathroom, making sure that the girl was not going to run away in my absence. I went back to the room in less than three minutes. Selena was still sitting, as if she hadn't even moved a millimeter. As usual, I put on a white T-shirt and my favorite jeans and sneakers, in which I go to the feast and to the world. The only piece of clothing that I change is the T-shirt, and the underwear, of course. 

"Let's go then?" I asked, glancing at the guest, and she, in turn, nodded in agreement. "So, now one question: how are we going to get out? Everyone are still at home and might we be seen".  
“You go out like a normal person through the front door, say goodbye to your parents so that they don’t suspect anything, and I’ll go out the same way as I entered through the window,” she shrugged.   
"You can?" I stared at my interlocutor.   
"Naturally! Not the first time", she confidently got up and approached the window, I nodded and left the room, closing the door behind me.   
I went downstairs, hugged my mother and said goodbye to my sister and stepfather. Gemma is not in a hurry to go to college, it's already seven o'clock, and she is still sitting in the kitchen, having breakfast and discussing something with Robin. I crossed the threshold of the house and immediately rushed to the backyard, where Selena was already waiting for me. 

“You're a pro,” I grinned.   
“I told you,” she grinned back. 

We started our journey. To say that we passed the road cheerfully communicating is to say nothing: we did not say a word. My house was far enough from the center, despite the fact that our city is small, you cannot walk from one end to the other. Selena and I took the bus to get to our destination faster, and thirteen minutes later we were standing near a large building that was recently built here. 

"What do you want to buy here?" I asked.  
"You can stay here, and I myself will go and buy what I need, ok?" the girl turned to me.  
"Okay", I did not insist, she needs personal space, "Just promise me to come back".   
“I promise,” her voice brightened.  
"Thank you", I sat down on the bench.   
“Thanks,” she said, and headed deeper into the mall.

I took my headphones out of my jeans pocket, plugged them into my phone and turned on my playlist. The first song that sounded in my ears was "Isn't She Lovely?" by Stevie Wonder. I locked the phone, and stared in the direction that Selena had just gone. I was sitting like this throughout the whole song, it seems that I did not even blink even once. Loud beats in headphones from the switched songs brought me out of the stupor. I shook my head a little and started the game on my phone. 

"POV SELENA"  
Harry is very sweet, but I don't understand why he cares about me so much. I finally got rid of him for a little while. First of all, I went to an electronics store, initially I wanted to buy only a SIM card, but nevertheless, I bought a brand new inexpensive smartphone with it. After that I decided to go to the Victoria's Secret boutique. It is located a little further from Harry, so on the way I hid behind the backs of passers-by, and quickly ran inside near the entrance. I knew what I wanted, so it didn't take long. The saleswoman packed the bright red lace underwear, I paid for the purchase and left the boutique with the Victoria's Secret bag hidden in a regular shabby plastic bag from a nearby grocery store.  
I went up to Harry, thank God, he doesn't ask unnecessary questions. He got up from the bench and we headed for the exit. The lessons were not over yet, but we were not going to go to school today, so we decided to stop by for a meal to pass the time and refresh ourselves. On the third floor of this very mall, there are several food stands. We decided to eat at McDonald's. We ordered food, took a table. While we were waiting for our orders to be ready, a tall, beautiful girl approached us. I raised my head a little and realized that I had already seen her somewhere, but where I could not remember. She began to talk sweetly with Harry, it turned out that this was his sister. She threw a suspicious glance at me several times, and then promised that she would not tell anything to their parents about him skipping school. When Harry went to get his order, Gemma turned her full attention to me. 

“I don’t know anything about you, but I saw you today at Victoria's Secret, is it for my brother?” She grinned.   
Uh, no... I hardly communicate with him", now I remembered where I saw her. She stood behind me in line at that ill-fated boutique.   
"I knew that he fell in love, because he had changed a lot lately, became somehow secretive", Gemma stretched her lips in a wide smile. Just then Harry arrived, carrying two trays in his hands: his own and mine.   
"I finally met your girlfriend", Gemma tickled her brother's elbow.  
"Stop already, please, we are not dating", he put the trays on the table and quickly translated the topic. "And what are you doing here?"

And so began Gemma's long and boring story of how she got here. It was clear from Harry's face that he wasn't interested either, but he tried not to show his real emotions, which made me laugh. When Gemma's boyfriend finally came, she left us alone with a playful wink at Harry and me. We also decided to go home. On the way, I told Harry how he looked from the outside when his sister poured out her soul to us, and then I started teasing him altogether. The guy had a good sense of humor, and he easily supported my mockery of him. When we returned, there was no one there. Harry showed me the whole house, showed me a corridor hung with photographs of himself and his sister, told me how important it was for his mother. For today we have become very close, and now we have not stopped talking even for a minute. Time passed quickly. We were watching TV when we heard the sound of the front door opening. I exchanged glances with Harry in fright, and without hesitation he flew into the corridor to distract his parents, but it turned out to be just Gemma with her boyfriend. We opened our eyes in shock and stared at each other. 

"What are you doing here?" we asked each other the same question in unison.


End file.
